Industrial action to take place January 27

France's Solidaires Informatique union has called for strike action a?t developer/publisher Ubisoft's Paris office. The industrial action, scheduled to take place next week on Friday, January 27, is being held in response to comments made by Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot over the company's recent financial losses.

The news comes one week after Ubisoft announced that it was further delaying pirate adventure Skull & Bones, alongside comments that implied the company was financially struggling after a particularly tough year for its game sales. Guillemot noted that he was hoping to cut costs at the studio, reducing expenditu?re by some â‚?00 million through "targeted restructuring, divesting some non-core assets, and usual natural attrition."

In an email to all Ubisoft staff, howeve?r, Guillemot raised company ire by, in workers' eyes, blaming the staff for the company's financial slump. "Today more than ever," reads the email obtained by Kotaku, "I need your full energy and commitment to ensure we get back on the path to success [...] I am also asking that each of you be especially careful and strategic with your spending and initiatives, to ensure we’re? being as efficient and lean as possible."

"The ball is in your court to deliver this line-up on time and at the expected level o??f quality, and show everyone what we are capable of achieving."

//twitter.com/SolInfoJeuVideo/statu?s/1615263954955116546?s=20&t=68xEwm32jLsHaaULWbGf0A

The comments were met with disdain by some at Ubisoft, who believe that Guillemot's email encourages crunch working conditions, while subtly implying that it is the staff who needs to "step up" to turn around company fortunes. Given the aforementioned cost-cutting promises, Ubisoft workers are also feeling a sense of uneas??e about their job security, and the fragility of Ubisoft's? subsidiary studios.

"On several occasions, Mr. Guillemot is trying to shift the blame (once again) onto the employeesÍľ he expects us to be mobilized, to 'give it our all,' to be 'as efficient and lean as possible'," writes Solidaires Informatique in its call to actio??n. "These words mean something: overtime, managerial pressure, burnout, etc. Mr. Guillemot asks a lot from his employees, b?ut without any ?compensation."

?"And because Mr. Guillemot and his clique only understand the relationship of power,? Solidaires Informatique is calling on the employees of Ubisoft Paris to go on strike".

The strike is scheduled to take place at Ubiso?ft Pari?s on Friday, 27 January, from 14:00 to 18:00.

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Spinnin' them Smurfs bangers

Publ?isher Microids, perhaps best known for its love of classic gaming franchises and media IPs, has announced that it is launching its own music label, Microids Records. The new in-house venture will focus on ??releasing soundtracks from the French publisher's litany of PC and console games.

"Microids Records and the new Entertainment Division are testaments of Microids�willingness to develop the company’s brands and contents wider than the video game medium," said Microids' VP of entertainment, Frédéric???? Claquin. "Being able to launch this label with two original scores signed by Inon Zur is a blessing and a true honour, especially as we celebrate the Syberia series' 20th anniversary."

As noted in the above statement, the first two releases from the label will be Inon Zur's dramatic scores to adventure titles Syberia 2 (2004) and Syberia 3 (2017). Going forward, fans can expect further releases from the new label, which has been formed as part of Microids' ongoing ??desire to increase its merchandising output beyond the realm of the physical video games themselves.

"This music label launch is a major milestone for Microids�adds company CEO Stéphane Longeard. "We have always had at heart to offer music scores enhancing the games we are creating and paying tribute to our great IPS, colla??borating with renown artists ??like Inon Zur for instance. We are fully aware about the importance of a great musical atmosphere for players, and we cannot wait to share what will be released next under the Microids Records label!"

Microids' next release, Asterix & Obelix XXXL: The Ram From Hibernia, will launch on October 13.

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It doesn't even have the French Goth one

When esoteric publisher Microids announced that we were getting five Smurfs games in as many years, we all laughed, then we cried a little, then laughed more to alleviate the pain. But it seems that we all ??had a lot of growing up to do, as Microids has channeled that bemusement into sadistic determination.

Following up the fall 2021 release of platform adventure The Smurfs: Mission Vileaf, the French publisher has now moved on to that second video game genre detailed in the Big Book of IP Licensing: Kart Racing. Smurfs Kart w??ill see the little blue buggers taking to the rural raceway in a selection of rickety-looking wooden karts, loaded for bear with special items and unique abilities.

Players can choose from The Main One, The One With The Chef's Hat, The Old One, Smurfette, or The Others. (Kinda 'sus that I only know Smurfette by name, frankly), before hitting a series of woodland tracks in what is sure to be the bog-standard Mario Kart template that has been previously adopted by The Simpsons, Wacky Races, Garfield, Family Guy, Shrek, Angry Birds, LEGO, Nicktoons, Hello Kitty, Woody Woodpecker, Danger Mouse, and fucking M&Ms.

Honestly, once Sonic and Sega All-Star Racing Transformed was released, we already had a grandstand champion. Still, now we've done platformer and kart racing, we have no choice but to go to the obligatory next stage: Smurfs Wrestling.

Smurfs Kart is currently in development for Nintendo Swit??ch. It is expected to launch this wi??nter.

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The D is Shattered.

Dontnod Entertainment, the French studio behind Life is Strange, Vampyr, and Twin Mirror, is going through so??mething of a rebranding, and will henceforth be known by its new moniker of simply "Don't Nod". The deve??loper made the announcement in a statement to the press this week.

"We are reintroducing the apostrophe and the space between the words to truly embrace the meaning of DON’T NOD. DON’T NOD is two words to represent our tendency to be non-conventional as a company and in the games that we create �as in, we DON’T NOD along to everyone else’s tune," writes the newly named company. "The D [in our logo] is shattered, and the N appears within it, signifying that we?? are not afraid to break the mold. This new logo links?? our games �meaningful, powerful stories �with who we are as a company."

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1_s94ud6Qg

In addition to the reworked name and logo, Don't Nod also unveiled a new website sporting the fresh branding. The site has a community-focused theme, and includes a section where players and fans will be able to upload content related to Don't Nod titles �such as artwork, short stories, and poetry, as well as testimonies and memories of their personal experiences with the company's releases. The company also recently won plaudits for introducing "work-from-home" options for its workforce, a move that also ??opened up further opportunities for remote and satellite employees.

"I a??m very proud of the journey that DON’T NOD has been on over the past 14 years, " said Don't Nod CEO Oskar Guilbert. "The company has evolved in many ways with a strong will to lead the way in creating and publishing meaningful entertainment, through original and relatable stories, which empower our talents and players to inspire change, however small. This new brand’s visual overhaul will help us convey our core identity."

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Nielsen Rat-ings

It seems that A Plague Tale is getting set to bring its grim nightmare to a whole new medium, as the Team Asobo stealth adventure is to be adapted as ??a live-action TV series at some point in the future.

Details about the new production are incredibly thin on the ground, with the news first reported by French outlet Allocine, before being later confirmed by the new show's director, Mathieu Turi. Turi already knows his way around a grisly encounter or two, having previously worked on horror films Hostile (2017) and Meander (2020), while also directing episodes of the Rosemary's Baby TV series.

"I’m honored to work on the adaptation as a TV series of A Plague Tale," wrote Turi on Twitter. "Thank you to Asobo Studio and Focus Entertainment for their trust. I can’t wait to bring Amicia and Hugo’s journey to the scree??n!"

It is believed that the new A Plague Tale adaptation, much like its video game source origins, will see the displaced De Rune children pick their way through 14th century France, desperately trying to stay one step ahead of both The Inquisition and a terrifying army of black rats that has enveloped the countryside. It's no ??secret among Destructoid readers that I'm a big fan of said game and I'm very much looking forward to seeing its period gothic story of loss and survival played out in televisual form.

A Plague Tale: Innocence is available now on PlayStation, PC, and Xbox Platforms. Sequel A Plague Tale: Requiem is currently in development for PS5, PC, Xbox Seri??es X, ?and Nintendo Switch (via cloud).

//twitter??.com/MathieuTURI/status/1504430034202812417?s=??20&t=2XWEeqvfCkagLMJApRZc_g

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I see your true (Sonic) colors

An online retailer may have outed the existence of a new Sonic the Hedgehog compilation, currently being produced by Sega for the bl??ue blu?r's 30th anniversary.

French retailer Sogamely, (interestingly the exact same retailer that leaked the supposed Sonic Colors remaster), put up a listing for "Sonic Collection EU version" for PS4 — with the title obviously being a webpage placeholder. This is no confirmation that said compilation even exists, of course, but given the anniversary year, the upcoming movie sequel, and Sogamely's rep for early Sonic the Hedgehog info, it's a strong possibility?? that said title is en route.

Making its Sega Mega Drive debut in 1991, Sonic the Hedgehog was an absolute smash hit platformer, birthing Sega's first true global multimedia mascot. Sonic and his dopey pals would go on to star and/or appear in well over 40 titles in the ensuing decades, while also appearing on a slew of merchandise and a string of animated TV and web series. To date, the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise? has shifted over on?e billion sales and downloads.

We'll keep you informed should Sega officially acknowledge? the compi?lation's existence.

It looks like Sega ??could be plan??ning a new Sonic Collection [VGC]

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Unions blast 'deteriorated working conditions'

A trio of workers' unions representing the employees of Blizzard Entertainment has called for strike action over ongoing plans to close the World of Warcraft developer's studio in Versailles.

As we reported last week, Activision-Blizzard is currently in the process of shuttering the French studio following a long and drawn-out dispute over severance, payable to some 130 employees who were hit with redundancy back in 2019. Originally, Blizzard had planned to relocate half of the Versailles team to its London offices, but the ongoing? COVID-19 pandemic has produced numerous setbacks, and seemingly the French studio will now close outright.

Speaking in an official statement, unions CGT, SPECIS-UNSA and CFE?-CGC described the action of sending 285 employees to a COVID-hit job market was "inconceivable," while lambasting the studios' decision to repeatedly deny its plans to close the st??udios' doors.

"This comes as a shock for employees who were not expecting that announcement," said union spokespeople in the statement. "In 15 years, many of us left their homes from across Europe and beyond to join the company, people truly invested their whole lives into Blizzard success [...] Management has willingly deteriorated work conditions to a point where psych??o-social risks raised dangerously, forcing work inspection to intervene and the CSE to launch a 'droit d'alerte'."

The union requests tha?t Activision-Blizzard cease its plans to close the Versailles office, increase th?e production of activity in its European region, and invest in the effective prevention of further psycho-social risks. On social media, Blizzard fans have been trending the #KeepVersaillesOpen hashtag in an effort to show support to the affected parties.

Blizzard workers union?s cal?led for a strike protesting Versailles plans [Rock Paper Shotgun]

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Hundreds of jobs at risk

According to a report by Bloomberg, Activision-Blizzard is in the proces??s of dissolving its office in Versailles, France, following what is described by the news outlet as "two years of turbulence."

Originally operated solely under Blizzard, the Versailles office's 400-strong staff were hit with hugely controversial layoffs in 2019, as a restructuring of Blizzard by Activision resulted in the loss of around 130 localised jobs. A long and drawn-out severance dispute with the government then left the office's staff and operations in a degree of limbo. Complicat??ing matters, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic reportedly put an end to Blizzard's plan to relocate half of the Versailles team to Lond?on, and now it seems that the French headquarters may now be closed in its entirety.

Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, Activision-Blizzard neither confirmed nor denied the report. ??"In the context of our Versailles office, the management of Blizzard France has informed its employee representatives of a proposed project to reorganize its activitie," said a spokesperson. "Supporting our employees through this process is our number one priority. We are working through various processes related to this and a CSE meeting is scheduled for October 13th and 14th. Until then, as there is a prescribed legal process, we cannot provide further comment."

Staff members are expected to receive more concrete information regarding the fu??ture next week.

Activision-Blizzard? closing France office - Report [GamesIndustry.biz / Bloomberg]

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'Thank you for making this journey incredible'

Focus Home Interactive has announced that its dark colonial RPG GreedFall has passed a new m?ilestone, having garnered one million global?? sales since its launch on PS4, PC, and Xbox One back in September 2019.

From French gaming studio Spiders, GreedFall is an action-adventure that follows a group o?f explorers who travel to the uncharted waters of Teer Fradee, hoping to discover the cure for a noxious plague that is engulfing the rest of the world. Players explore the mysterious new land, (which is mired in a violent? civil uprising), breaking and forging alliances with the locals, while fending off threats from invading parties and strange, undiscovered creatures.

GreedFall launched to modest scores, praised by critics and fans for its unique storyline and environment, as well as its solid combat and character building, but lamented for its cumbersome skill tree and "rough around the edges" visual design. Overall, however, GreedFall is considered a solid mid-tier experience.

Spiders is currently at work on the recently revealed SteelRising, a robotic take on the French Revolution, which I'm very excited to see more of. GreedFall is available now ??on PS4, PC, and Xbox One. It was also recently added to the PlayStation?? Now service.

🂠@greedfall has sold over one mi??llion copies world??wide. Teer Fradee has been welcoming a lot of new Renaigse!

Thank you so much for making the journey this incredible! pic.twitter.com/BV17Bb9iAi

— Focus Home Interactive (@FocusHome) August 5, 2020

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Wanna see the vroom vrooms?

One of the top dogs at publisher Nacon (previously Bigben Interactive) has confirmed that a new entry in driving sim series Test Drive Unlimited is currently i??n development. The new title is being? handled by French studio Kylotonn.

The quiet confirmation came from Nacon's Head of Publishing Benoit Clerc, during an interview with VentureBeat. "[Kylotonn are] based in Paris and Lyon. They're specialized in racing," said Clerc. "They're doing off-road racing with WRC, and they're doing two-wheel racing with Isle of Man TT. They're currently working on our biggest project by far, which is the next Test Drive Unlimited game."

Test Drive Unlimited first launched way back in 2006, where the realistic open-world driving simulator received plaudits for its expansive road map, gameplay freedom, and passionate attention-to-detail regarding its tarmac-burning roster of vehicles. Test Drive Unlimited 2 followed lat?er in 2011 but failed the capture the same acclaim, chastised for its atrocious, bug-riddled gameplay, repetitive voice acting and dull atmosphere.

The franchise has remained dormant since then, with the brand often rearing its hood in "Whatever happened to...?" conversations online. But it seems that Test Drive Unlimited is back in the garage and getting revved up for a glorious return. Everyone loves a comeback, so here's hoping Kylotonn will be able to restore the TDU name to its former glory.

Nacon's B??enoit Clerc: Becoming a Double-A gaming force [VentureBeat]

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Terrorvision

According to French film website Allocine, director Christophe Gans is currently working on two new movie adaptations: one based on Konami's fog-fest Silent Hill and another focused on Japan's ghoulish series Project Zero/Fatal Frame.

In a translation provided by Rely on Horror, Gans is said to be working with the producer of the Resident Evil films on the new Silent Hill movie, which will be "anchored in (the) atmosphere of a small American town, ravaged by puritanism." Gans previously helmed the 2006 Silent Hill flick which, while no masterpiece, is still considered by some fans to be an atmospheric adaptation of the iconic survival ? horror seri??es.

In regards to the Project Zero/Fatal Frame adaptation, (a movie that has been murmured about for many years now), Gans has little detail to offer, but does specifi??cally note that he has no plans to uproot the story from it??s "Japanese haunted house" setting.

It seems clear from these comments that both projects are in their very early stages, if they're to see the light of day at all. But Gans obviously has personal interest and investment in these titles, so it would be unsurprising if the twisted creatures of Silent Hill and Project Zero creep t??he?ir way onto the big screen at some point in the future.

Gans announces new Silent Hill/Fatal Frame movies [Rely on Horror, Allocine]

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Joyless-Con

Nintendo has joined a dubious end-of-year "honours" list ??in ??French consumer publication 60 millions de consommateurs - that's "60 million consumers"; yeah, I had some college - where the publisher was named one of the "worst companies of 2019" due to the fragility of the Nintendo Switch Joy-Con.

An ongoing issue with the console since launch has been the infamous "Joy-Con Drift", a fault which causes the Switch to register movement on the thumbsticks where there is none. In America, drifting Joy-Con can be sent away for fre?e repair, but this scheme has unfortunately not been afforded ?to all territories. Given that a replacement Joy-Con isn't cheap, ??the problem has caused much chagrin among Switch users, even leading to the extremities of a class action lawsuit.

Nintendo itself has been relatively quiet about the matter, generally just re-iterating the company line on "quality products". But hopefully, as the production of Switch units continues into the new year, "drift" and other Joy-Con problems can be all but eradicated from future models. 2019 has been a very good year for the developer/publisher, but the "Cactus of the Too Fragile product" is probably one end-of-year award tha?t won't be sitting on the mantelpiece.

Nintendo Switch named most?? fragile product of 2019 [MyNintendoNews / Resetera]

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'Our goal is to make sure you can have a Unity within an Odyssey'

Over the course of this last console generation, smaller, more focused linear games have basically fallen out of fashion in favor of massive open-worlds. Even Nintendo got in on the action with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, creating a ridiculously large version of Hyru?le with virtually no limits. Of all the triple-A publishers creating similar titles, Ubisoft is the most prolific. Virtually every game from the company is some kind of large scale world with tons of stuff to do.

Some fans of the company's titles have been asking when Ubisoft will return to its classic games like Splinter Cell, Beyond Good and Evil, or even the earlier Assassin's Creed games. Apparently, they won't be anytime soon as CEO Yves Guillemot spoke to GamesIndustry.biz about the matter.

When questioned if something like Assassin's Creed Unity would ever see a comeback -a game that featured a single location and shorter story-, Guillemot said, "No. Our goal is to make sure you can have a Unity within an Odyssey. If you want to have a story of 15 hours, you can have it, but you can also have other stories. You live in that world and you pursue what you want to pursue. You have an experience, many Unity-like experiences."

Taken at face value, that makes sense. If you rush through newer games and ignore the plethora of side content, open-world titles can typically be finished in less than 20 hours. This is ignoring how titles like Assassin's Creed Odyssey, despite being good games, artificially gate off progression beyond bonkers ass XP s?ystems (pushing you to microtransactions to speed the process up) and ridiculously gigantic worlds that can ta?ke an hour to get from one end to the other. Still, Guillemot is correct here.

If these game worlds are getting bigger and Ubisoft isn't looking to go smaller scale, can that business model sustain itself? Guillemot believes it can. "What we've seen in the last few years is the number of players that play our games is constantly growing," Guillemot asserts. "New markets are opening up and games live a lot longer th?an before. So at the moment, we see that we can continue to increase the investments because we know we can have a return on investment that can be quite long[-tailed]." This is obviously backed by DLC roadmaps, microtransaction schemes, and fre?e content drops to keep players invested.

Even if people don't participate in post-purchase spending, Guillemot notes that the average playtime of Odyssey, in particular, was around 60 hours per player. For him, this proves that "players got a lot from their inve??stment in the game, a lot more than they got before." With a good portion buying DLC and coming back to each game, it seems Ubisoft is right to believe this model is t??he future.

I'm not sure if I agree with everything Guillemot is saying, but far be it from me to tell you how to spend your time. If you enjoy sticking with a single game for prolonged periods of time, it doesn't make you a bad person or a blight on this industry. Maybe the microtransactions are being taken to an extreme, but Ubisoft has cultivated fans of its brands that are very passionate. If they are getting something out of these larger?? worlds and continuously expanding narratives, then who's to say Ubisoft is doing wrong?

Why Ubisoft isn't abandoning its open worlds [GamesIndustry.biz]

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New World Disorder

Focus Home Entertainment has released a launch trailer for Spiders morose RPG Greedfall, which launches today on PS4, PC and Xbox One.

The 17th century drama is the story of a band of explorers, who venture to the uncharted land of Teer Fradee, searching for a cure to a plague that is wiping out human?ity. ??Upon arrival, the party becomes mixed up in a violent conflict with the island's citizens, a roaming band of invaders, and the strange and paranormal inhabitants of the mysterious locale.

Greedfall bases much of its story events around the player's choices, alliances and actions, with fragile relationships built and lost in the blink of an eye. The player will be accountable for their actions toward the people of Teer Fradee, their enemies, and even their own party members. To hear more about Greedfall, you can check out Patrick Hancock's Review-in-Progress right here.

Greedfall is out now on PS4, PC and Xbox One.

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Keep your friends close etc...

During ??this week's gamescom event in Cologne, Germany, French dev??eloper Spiders gifted us a new trailer for their upcoming RPG GreedFall, an interesting and dramatic-looking adventure set in an alternate 17th century.

GreedFall is the the story of a band of explorers, who set sail for uncharted land in a desperate q??uest to find the cure for a miserable illness that is plaguing their homeland and threatening to wipe out all of humanity if left untested. Arriving on the mysterious? island of Teer Fradee, people politics quickly come into play as the explorers find themselves confronted by the island's natives, a separate band of invaders, as well as some strange, mythical beings and beasts, all of whom are out for blood from someone or other.

Over the course of the adventure players will be required to play human chess with these characters, using social interactions and - indeed - physical actions in order to maintain a fragile relationship with those who would help or hinder your efforts. Characters you come across can become you companions, with their actions dictated by your own interactions with both them, and those you encounter during your time in Teer Fradee. Will you be able to convince people to assist you? In a pinch, will you use brutality ??if democracy fails? and - give the urgency of your quest - will the needs of the many overrule the needs of the few?

Another release in Focus Entertainment's efforts to publish mid-t?ier, lower-budget, high quality games, I will admit to be quite intrigued by GreedFall. I think it has a unique setting, a style all of its own and, if the companions system proves effective, could make for some emotional and dramatic decision-making. Hopefully, the fina??l product will do just to the developer's ambition.

GreedFall launches September 10 on PS4, PC and Xbox One.

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Oh, also, there's a gross disease kicking around

Focus Home Interactive continue on their noble quest to bring interesting mid-tier titles to the masses, releasing a new trailer (alongside a release date) for GreedFall, an upcoming action-RPG from French developer? Spiders.

Set in an alternate 17th century, the player will step into the boots of a colonial explorer, who travels to the uncharted isle of Teer Fradee in a quest to discover a cure for a deadly illness that is threatening to wipe out humanity (Focus Home are real big on their disease-based narratives it appears). Upon arriving at Teer Fradee, the explorers will become entwined in a war? between the natives of the island and a party of invaders, while also unearthing ancient secrets and encountering mysterious spirits, determined to ward off trespassers. That includes you, buc??ko.

En route to a remedy, players will encounter a variety of other characters, friendly and otherwise, and may have to form fragile alliances in order to further the cause and find success. Will you help the invaders brute force their way into this new civilisation, or will you stand alongside the natives, in hopes of earning their trust and guidance? Focus has stated that conversational choices and your approach to GreedFall's mission??s will shap?e your party's reputation, the island's future, and civilisation itself.

GreedFall launches September 10 on PS4, PC and Xbox One.

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Bless the Beasts and Children

Every now and then, a title shows up on the video game market that has all the passion and talent of the "AAA gaming" scene, but without the budget or the marketing machine of a Warner Bros. or an Activision in its corner. Despite this, some of these "mid-tier" releases go on to find critical and/or financial success. Titles such as Ninja Theory's award-winning Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice are an obvious example.

Publisher Focus Home Interactive seems to be sold on the idea that you can release great, profitable games without bankrupting the stock market, ruining your workforce, relying on annual sequels, or launching with a two-year DLC plan. In the summer of 2018, Focus released Dontnod's Vampyr, which managed to turn a profit shortly after one month, befo??re going on to eventually shift well over a million copies.

Focus is now hoping for similar success with this latest unknown entity, A Plague Tale: Innocence. Developed by French outfit Asobo Studios, A Plague Tale is a somber story of courage, loss, and political oppression, set against the backdrop of one of history's most horrifying time periods. It's also one o?f the best games I've played this year.

A Plague Tale: Innocence (PS4 [reviewed], PC, Xbox One)
Developer: Asobo Studios
Publisher: Focus Home Interactive
Released: May 14, 2019
MSRP: $49.99

Set in 14th century France, A Plague Tale: Innocence is the story ??of a courageous young girl, Amicia De Rune, and her even younger brother Hugo, who has been sick since birth. Children of noble blood, the De Rune family have thus far managed to evade the prevalent death that is creeping across the country, carried by an underground army of black rats. That is until a particularly violent morning, when the De Rune children are forced to flee their opulent home, driven out by a bloody attack from those terrifying defenders of religion: The Inquisition.

Having already seen more horror in one day than any child should in their lifetime, and now hunted like animals by The Inquisition's soldiers, Amicia and Hugo flee deep into the Aquitaine district. Over the course of this dark and seemingly hopeless journey, Amicia will be forced to become a strong-willed, fearless young?? woman, fending off impossible odds in the form of a battalion of heavily??-armed soldiers, as well as the terrifying rodent menace that literally plagues the countryside.

Fortunately, the siblings are not completely alone. The Plague may have killed many, but there are scant survivors, fellow enemies of authority, who Amicia and Hugo will encounter on the road. Soon, our twosome become a party who, outnumbered and outmatched, must rely on crude weaponry, subterfuge and the ancient science of alchemy to escape the district, The Inquisition, and the teeming mass of teeth and claws attempting to swallow them??? all.

A Plague Tale is a linear single-player stealth adventure, interspersed with puzzle elements of the lever-pulling, box-pushing kind. "Linear" is stressed. This isn't an open-world game, there aren't multiple paths to be chosen, and while secrets exist, they're mostly just the discovery of extra ammunition and supplies. First and foremost, A Plague Tale is a stealth title, with each chapter of the siblings' journey divided between either escaping packs of rodents, or sneaking past ??burly guards, who're are able to cut down Amicia in a single blow.

The De Runes must rely on teamwork and trickery to push through each location, whether creating distractions, throwing breakable items, putting out lights, or using the environment to creep past – or even eliminate – their enemies. When it comes to dealing with rats, light is the key weapon, with players using lateral thinking and nearby fires, braziers, lanter??ns, and even the weather to pick their way through the ??rodents. These sequences are creepy and intense affairs, with a real sense of satisfaction to their completion.

As the pair journey through the countryside, a very basic crafting system allows for the creation of tools and powders to tip the odds in Amicia's favour. Light-bombs, small explosives, even sleeping dust can be used in a pinch to evade the bad guys. When all else fails, Amicia is armed with a crude sling, an??d woe betide any soldier who takes her shot lightly, lest they find a rock embedded in their cranium. By best selecting their path through danger, utilising all available options, Amicia must guide the duo to safety.

Stealth in gaming is not everyone's bag. It can be a slow-moving, even tedious affair. To combat the linearity, A Plague Tale keeps players involved with brilliant characters, believable dialogue, and genuinely affecting moments of pathos, friendship, and cruelty. In the downtime between action, Amicia, Hugo, their companions – and enemies – engage in mature, realistic conversation, dialogue that truly brings the cast to life. The voice-acting (I played the game in French and I strongly recommend pla??yer??s do likewise) is touching and nuanced.

Hugo's childish inquisitiveness is realistic, not corny. Conversation is natural, flowing often and yet, just as importantly, A Plague Tale knows when not to say anything at all, allowing the visuals to carry the weight of the drama. Music also plays an important part, with a string-heavy score used to great emotional effect, while fast fidd??ling accompanies the encroaching rat army.

Every game can't be God of War in the looks department, but A Plague Tale makes the most of its resources, going beyond its limitations to offer luscious forests, warmly lit churches, and beautiful strolls along babbling brooks. At the other extreme, Amicia is dropped into dark slums filled with festering corpses, post-war battlefields, and frightening underground dens, with tiny eyes peering from every nook and cranny. A Plague Tale creates a unique setting, which suc?ceeds in delighting and disgusting in equal amounts. Character models themselves have impressive textures, even if certain animations are undeniably janky.

Aware that the story is its ace-in-the-hole, A Plague Tale chooses not to get bogged down in the details. Game design is streamlined, minimising time spent in menus, and removing entirely the option to gallivant off on side-quests. This allows the player to focus on the urgency of the story's dramatic weight. The trial of the De Rune children – and how it shapes them as people – is emotive and heartbreaking. The pair are forced to ??grow up fast, leaving behind their noble heritage, and resorting to morally-dubious acts in order to preserve the lives of themselves and those around them.

Ultimately, at the heart of A Plague Tale lies a standard stealth-adventure, no more or less. But this overly-familiar action is?? so perfectly balanced in itself, so lavishly staged, and given such purpose through its characters' ongoing plight, that to not see this unlikely party of heroes through to their dramatic ??end seems almost impossible.

A Plague Tale: Innocence is a grim, gripping, and fantastic adventure. The solid stealth gameplay offers little new, but the unique setting, affecting characters, excellent dialogue, and oppressive atmosphere more than redress that linearity. Add to this a lean design, an emotive score, and a commitment to narrative focus, and A Plague Tale deserves to be heralded as ??one of 2019's very best adventures.

_{[This review is based on a retai?l build of the? game provided by the publisher.]}

The post Review: A Plague Tale – Innocence appeared first on Destructoid.

Call it a revolution

One of the most notorious Assassin's Creed games has found new life five years after launch. In the wake of the Notre Dame fire in Paris, Ubisoft ran a promotion where it gave away Assassin's Creed Unity for free on PC. The Notre Dame cathedral is that game's stunning centerpiece, after all??.

People gobbled it up. Now that the giveaway is over, The Hollywood Reporter states that Assassin's Creed Unity has been downloaded more than three million times in the past week. Also, users took to Steam to "reverse review bomb" the game -- leaving large swaths of positive fe??edback in response to Ub??isoft's promotion.

There are two Notre Dame angles that concern Ubisoft. The French publisher has pledged to donate €500,000 to help restore the church. Additionally, there's talk that Assassin's Creed Unity's in-game recreation might be used to help rebuild the Notre Dame cathedral. It took some extremely unfortunate circumstances, but Assassin's Creed Unity is eerily relevant again.

Ubisoft's 'Ass?assin's Creed: Unity' Downloaded 3M Times Following Notre ?Dame Fire [The Hollywood Reporter]

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Ubisoft is also donating â‚?00,000

Ubisoft is doing what it can to preserve the legacy of the Notre Dame. Following the tragic fire earlie??r this week, Ubisoft is gifting players the opportunity to explore its incredibly well-detailed recreation of the famed ca?thedral.

Assassin's Creed Unity is free on PC for the next week. It's a permanent license for anyone who grabs it through Uplay before April 25 at 1am local time. Here's the link to nab it. Despite its reputation, Assassin's Creed Unity is a solid Assassin's Creed game. However, it?? launched in a state of di??srepair on PC, and never really stood a fighting chance at redeeming itself; those technical issues have since been fixed.

The Notre Dame is Assassin's Creed Unity's crowning jewel, the magnificent edifice that stands tall in the Parisian city center. As we mentioned yesterday, there's talk that Assassin's Creed Unity will be used to help restore the Notre Dame. In light of that, we bumped ou?r 2014 interview with Ubisoft's Caroline Miousse -- the artist who spent two years meticulously crafting this cathedral in a video game. The fire, unfortunate as it may be, now serves as extra validation that Miousse's ti?me and e?ffort was well-spent.

Giving away Assassin's Creed Unity isn't the extent of Ubisoft's charity. The French publisher is also donating €500,000 for the reconstruction and restoration of the Notre Dame. ??;

Supporting Notre-Dame de Paris [Ubisoft]

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Viva la Dtoid

Take others' fates into your hands with this contest. Win We. The Revolution for Steam!

Hey, so this one is pretty unique. There's a great setup, great ??visuals, and what looks like some pretty harrowing gameplay. Sounds good, right?

Win a Steam copy of We. The Revolution, and take on the French Revolution!

I'll let Polyslash tell you all about it.

Featuring unique gameplay and a singular art style, We. The Revolutioncasts players in the role of a judge in the Revolutionary Tribunal during the great French Revolution era. Players will have to trudge through the turbulent setting passing sentences, playing a dangerous political game, and?? doing everything in their power to avoid the guillotine and being marked as an enemy of the revolution. As the revolutionary judge, players will have to confront their decisions with their family who may very often see things differently.

We. The Revolution puts players in morally ambiguous situations in which there are no obvious solutions??, and the decisions they make are never clear cut. The power over human life and death is a heavy burden and having responsibility and strength will be tantamount when making decisions that can affect the fate of the revolution.

Shape history and decide wh?o will live and who will die.

• Experience the oppressive atmosphere of the French Revolution as you've come to know it from the classic novels of Alexandre Dumas and Joseph Conrad.
• Preside dozen of unique and morally ambiguous court cases.
• Run your own courtroom – question witnesses, analyze clues and evidence, read reports, and pass sentences.
• Confront your judgments with your family.
• Make friends and enemies of different rival factions vying for power. Make them your associates or make them disappear!
• Engage in a mix of genres, blending case-building with intrigue-crafting and turn-based tactics.

If I knew any French I'd put something in French ?here. But I don't. Lo que sea.

To enter to win your copy, comment below telling us how you'd handle a revolution at Dtoid. Some users decided that I was a terrible Community Manager, so I appointed you to try them in court and quell the coup. Would you show mercy? Would you sentence them to the gallows? Would you ban Soulbow from ever playing Siege again? Tell us!

We have five Steam copies to give out. Winners will be drawn on Tuesday, March 26. Make sure to comment using a Dtoid account with your current email address on file. New users can sign up here to defend my honor.

We. The Revolution is available now on Steam. Head over to P??C Invasion for mor?e chances to win.

The post Contest: Win a Steam copy of We. The Revolution appeared first on Destructoid.

The blood of criminals fertilises the soil of liberty

I recently finished playing and loving Return of the Obra Dinn. Its unique gameplay and immersive atmosphere felt like a breath of fresh air with regards to what games can do. We. The Revolution ha?s been on the outskirts of my radar for a while due to its distinct art style and an interesting concept on paper, but not much beyond said art has been seen. Now a little under a month before release, we have a look at how the gameplay is going to work. From what I've seen, it should tick a lot of my boxes.

You play as a judge during the French Revolution and, using clues presented to you, must determine who is guilty of treason to the revolution and who is an ally. Along the way, you'll make enemies, sometimes within your own family. The key to victory and keeping your head attached to your neck is piecing together all that you are given and making the right decision based on that information. We. The Revolution looks like another unique experience that only a game could provide; I just hope the final product lives up to its ??lofty expectations.

Currently, you can pre-order We. The Revolution on GOG for a 15% discount, while pre-orders are up on Steam for the full price of $19.99. We. The Revolution is slated to release for PC/??Mac on March 21, with a Ninten?do Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One release planned for the future.

The post Heads roll in We. The Revolution’s first gameplay trailer appeared first on Destructoid.

Dude's gotta be bananas

In France, a teenager has been busted after using a self-service checkout to buy a PlayStation 4 console for less than a tenner. 19-year-old "Adel" picked up the con?sole at a local supermarket and hefted it over to the fruit and veg section, where he w??eighed the console to bag himself a DIY pricepoint.

Recognising the console as a 6lbs bag of fruit, the scales gave Adel a price sticker for €9 (roughly $10 USD) which he then used to scan the PS4 through the store's self-service checkouts. It is believed that Adel later sold the console for around €100 to pay for a train ticket to his hometown of Nice?? in Southern France.

Seemingly onto a sure thing, the master criminal then attempted the exact same shtick, at the exact same store, the very next day, w??here he was ultimately apprehended. Earlier this month a court sentenced him to an eight-month suspended sentence. Oh, and in accordance with French law, he's also ?barred from holding public office for a further five years.

Now let the fruit puns commence.

French teen sentenced for bu??ying PS4 with false price sticker [Europe1]

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For a limited time of course

Deciding whether to get the puppies in flower pots or kittens in baskets on your new personalized credit card is a hard enough decision to break a person. Well, worry no more as customers of the French banking group Société Générale now have a credit card ?so cute it puts others to shame.

Thanks to a partnership with the Pokémon Company they're now offering limited-edition credit cards with everyone's favorite electric rat. I'm sure his little red c??heeks will be just enough to distract you as you charge yet another Pokémon game you don't have the money to buy. 

French bank offe??ring limited editio?n Pikachu credit cards [Go Nintendo]

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They barrel rolled, essentially

To a lot of people, the reveal that the Switch port of Ubisoft's upcoming Starlink: Battle for Atlas would include exclusive Star Fox content was enough to propel the game from, "Looks decent," to, "Holy shit, I need this!" I know I'm suddenly interested in havi?ng a weird toys-to-life game if it means I can play a beloved Nintendo icon. How did that collaboration come to be, though?

A recent issue of Famitsu had an interview with Starlink producer Matthew Rose and it reveals that the cross-over happened to be a chance encounter that Nintendo's Reggie Fils-Aime had with the game. During a closed doors event in 2017 (possibly at E3), Reggie noticed the possibilities the game could harbor and invited the devs to present an idea to Miyamoto and the Star Fox team (not the actual members of Star Fox, though that would be awesome).

Rose also told Famitsu that his team is working to faithfully recreate the abilities of the Arwing for use in Starlink. His team is all very big Star Fox fans and they are ded??icated to capturing Fox's personality traits and special abilities ??(of which many are still under wraps).

As for the demo we did see at E3, Rose is stressing that Starlink will be fully completable without any additional toys beyond the starter pack. Post-launch DLC will be coming to the title (probably with some physical toys, as well), but you only need to purchase the main title to experience the story that Starlink has to offer.

Starlink Producer Matthew Rose Reveals The Origins Of The Star Fox Collaboration [Siliconera]

The post Starlink producer talks about how Ubisoft scored that Star Fox?? collaboration appeared first on Destructoid.

Duodecimpath Traveler?

Octopath Traveler, Square Enix's upcoming classic RPG throwback game for Switch, has been heavily marketed for the last year as offering eight distinct job classes for players to tinker with. Turns out, there are going ?to be a few hidden jobs in the game for players to discover. This was revealed by Nintendo of France on Twitter after presenting the news to the Japan Expo in France.

In addition to those starting characters, the Augur, Enchanter, Rune Lord and Warlord will be unlockable through some means in-game. Since you can actually multiclass each hero with more advanced versions of their starting classes (or copy abilities from another ally), this likely means there won't be an additional four characters to play as. This also reminds me heavily of Final Fantasy III, whi??ch had a bunch of secret jobs that required you to find specific items and weapons.

Nintendo France [Twitter]

The post Octopath Traveler h?as a few hidden jobs for players to discover appeared first on Destructoid.

Titles that pull on the heartstrings

Last week saw The Emotional Games Awards 2018 take place in Laval, France. It was the second year for the ceremony, which exists to "reward and promote games which bring on the most complex emotions in the pla?ye?rs".

The jury consisted of seven people, taken from various areas of the video game industry, as well as philosophers and neuro-science specialists. It is, admittedly, quite the niche idea for an awards ceremony. I personally think emotion, complex or otherwise, is relative in all forms of video game, regardless of genre. There are games that have made me cry, for example, that I'm pretty sure would never have ever seen nomination in such a ceremony.

Still, I do fully support anything video game related getting positive recognition, especially during yet anot??her boring "Games are E??vil" zeitgeist. I've lived through more of those than I care to remember. So, congratulations to the Emotional Video Game Award Winners 2018, which are as follows:

• Best Emotional Game: Hellblade : Senua's Sacrifice (Ninja Theory)
• Best Emotional Artistic Achievement: Old Man's Journey (Broken Rules)
• Best Emotional Game Design: Cultist Simulator (Weather Factory)
• Best Emotional Music: Inside (Martin Stig Andersen-Playdead)
• Best Emotional Indie Game: _Observer_ (Bloober Team)
• Best Emotional VR Game: Lone Echo (Ready at Dawn)
• Best Emotional Mobile & Handheld Game: Bury me, my love (The Pixel Hunt/ Arte / Figs / Playdius)
• Prix du public: Is it Love?: Mystery Spell - Peter (1492 Studio)

The post Here are the winne??rs of The Emotional Games Awards 2018 appeared first on Destructoid.

For Honor and quality connections!

Almost a year ago, Ubisoft claimed that it would be adding dedicated servers to its historical brawler For Honor. While that update arrived on PC last month, it hasn't made its way onto consoles...that is, until now! Starting tomorrow, March 6, console players will be able to finally play For Honor with a decent connection.

Coming as part of For Honor Season Five, dedicated servers will also be accompanied by major?? hero updates, new training features and a special three week long  "Apollyon’s Legacy" event. Data gathered from the PC rollout has shown improved match completion rates and a complete elimination of games being stalled due to host migration. There ar??e also some other unnamed improvements that Ubisoft is promising will happen for console players.

Whether or not this is too late to save the game is up for debate, but at least Ubisoft has shown dedication to improving the experience. With how successful Rainbow Six Siege has been for the publisher, maybe For Honor can make a comeback? and do justice to its intriguing ??premise.

The post For Honor is getting dedic??ated servers on ??consoles tomorrow appeared first on Destructoid.

It just hit one million

Right now, and this could change once Nintendo gives us an updated figure, the Nintendo Switch has sold nearly 15 million units. It's already surpassed the lifetime sales of the Wii U worldwide, and in many specific regions, and it's still not a year old yet (that's happening ??next week on March 3).

One of those specifi?c regions that the S?witch did well in is France, and we have a better idea of where it's at. According to the finance outlet Le Figaro Economie, the Switch just hit one million units in the region, making it the fastest-selling console in France. Now it still has a ways to go to reach the 6.4 million total mark of the Wii, but again, the Switch is having an easier time out of the gate than the Wii did.

To give you an idea of where Nintendo wants to be at in the area -- Nintendo of Franc?e head Philippe Lavoué thanks the Switch will reach two million by the end of the year.

Le Figaro Economie [Twitter via Nintendo Life]

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Free for all

The burgeoning "battle royale" sub-genre is about to get another entrant. Coming from Focus Home Interactive and some of the devs behind the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series, this post-apocalyptic first-person shooter will tak?e place in Chernobyl and pit players not only against 99 other players, but the wasteland itself.

Much like the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series, there will be anomalies and mutated beasts roaming around and hunting players. There will also be a day-night cycle in the game, which makes me think matches will be going on for far longer than PUBG or Fortnite. The game will contain so?lo and squads rule sets, so you won't need to bear the wasteland alon?e.

We'll get our first look at the game tomorrow from the annual "Le What's Next de Focus" event in Paris, which takes place on the 7th and 8th. It will be coming to PC and consoles sometime this year with an early-access period on PC. The setting, alone, has me intrigued, so I'm curious how it will play.

The post Former STALKER devs are making Fear?? the Wolves, a new ba??ttle royale FPS appeared first on Destructoid.

Killing Credibility

Over the weekend, French online retailers Micromania posted a pre-order listing for a Nintendo Switch release of the adorably grim Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony.

The murderous vis??ual novel, which released on PS4, P??S Vita and PC last year, received plaudits from critics and fans alike for its blackly-comic storytelling, great visuals and magnetic cast of characters, even ending up on multiple Best of the Year nominee lists.

The Micromania listing included a mock-up of the supposed packaging, featuring the alternate cover for the console releases, and even a release date of July 20. The listing was then removed,?? but not before think-fast shoppers took a screen grab, which can be seen below.

It's worth noting that publishers NIS America have a press conference scheduled for the start of Februa??ry, so perhaps this mystery will b??e solved, or debunked entirely, at that event.

Danganronpa V3 for Switch appears on Micromania [NintendoSoup]

The post Rumour: Listing for Danganronpa V3 for Switch appears, is ??removed appeared first on Destructoid.